A friend and colleague of mine, Caitlin O'Connell-Rodwell (author of "The Elephant's Secret Sense"), is looking for paying volunteers to assist with an elephant research project in Etosha National Park in Namibia. I spent a week there last summer and will be back for another two weeks this summer (end of July). This is a truly amazing opportunity for a photographer to have a non-stop stream of wildlife showing up at a water hole for a 2 week period, and to assist in a scientific research project. The cost last year was $200 per day plus travel expenses; I'm assuming it will be similar this year. The two time periods that are available are June 29 through July 13, or July 17/18 through July 31.
We are currently accepting paying volunteers for our primary study site at Mushara waterhole in Namibia. Mushara is a remote water point, located in the northeast corner of the Etosha National Park and is closed to the public. The site is fed by an artesian spring that is controlled in the dry season to support the many species of wildlife that depend on it. Of the approximately 2,500 elephants that reside in the park, this region hosts an estimated 500 individuals and family herds, of which about 250 are frequent visitors to our field site.
During our field studies, we build a temporary 10 x 10 meter camp around a permanent three story tower that hosts eight to ten researchers consisting of the principle investigators, students and several paying volunteers, all of whom contribute financially towards the equiping and running of the field site.
The field camp is completely isolated and run entirely on solar energy. It has no plumbing, but does have a constant stream of wildlife ranging from birds to lions, all day and night. The camp has a “bush” toilet and shower, and is enclosed in a boma (hide) fence and an electric fence and volunteers are housed in shared tents for two-week periods between June and August each year.
If you are interested in volunteering with us, please send us an e-mail query with a short paragraph indicating any previous experience that would be helpful to our research (see research section), as well as your specific interest in the program.
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A few pics from last year, to spark your interest in Mushara. These have all been posted previously!!
